Will I Need Mediation After My Divorce Is Final?
For many couples, it is hard to think about life after divorce. After investing so many years in your marriage, the focus when the decision is made to end the marriage is on the specifics of the divorce. If you do spend time thinking about what your life will be like after your divorce, these thoughts likely do NOT include your former spouse. However, your divorce is just the beginning of a new phase of your relationship, especially if you have children. Post-divorce mediation is a great tool for managing inevitable conflict that comes up after your divorce is final, without having to go back to the courtroom.
We have all probably heard the familiar phrase “nearly ½ of all marriages end in divorce.” The truth is,however, this may no longer be the case. In fact, the divorce rate has been declining in the last several years and is currently hovering around 39-40%. There are many reasons for this trend, and over the last year, the pandemic has likely pushed these numbers down even further. Are couples staying together because they are happier? This is unlikely. Here are some of the reasons why the divorce rate is declining:
The pandemic has had a profound impact on families in our country, our economy, and our workforce. Parents are juggling virtual school for their kids, changes in job status, financial burdens are high, and we have all had to incorporate social distancing and masking into our daily lives. It is interesting to note that even though many of us have been spending much more time at home under this stress, marriage rates and divorce rates are on the decline compared to pre-pandemic data. At a time of unparalleled stress, what might be accounting for these marriage and divorce rates?
Divorce mediation is now a sought-after option for couples who have decided to pursue a divorce. It is an effective, and often preferable, option for many couples because it eliminates much of the stress and financial burdens of the more traditional court-based divorce proceedings. Johnson Mediation has established itself as one of the top providers of divorce mediation in Minnesota and would be happy to work with you to help you settle the terms of your divorce.
The most common reason to seek help after your divorce has been finalized is that your former spouse is acting in violation of your divorce agreement in some way. If a divorce process has been contentious and filled with conflict, it is not out of the realm of possibility that a former spouse could act spitefully or bitterly and try to make your life more difficult. When divorcing couples work with a qualified divorce mediator, that kind of behavior is less likely because of the emphasis on collaboration, cooperation, and mutual problem solving. However, most circumstances have exceptions, and mediated divorces have been known to result in post-divorce conflict
The stressful times through which we are living right now are unique in many ways. We are working our way through a once-in-a-century pandemic and a wide variety of social issues that have created challenges, struggles and difficulty. But while the times we are in now bring new and unfamiliar challenges, there are also stressful aspects of our world that remain constant. One of them is that, despite these times, people are still affected by divorce. Johnson Mediation may not be able to do much about the pandemic, but we are highly trained professionals who have helped many couples find resolution to the conflict in their marriages before and during this Pandemic.
